A National Security Bureau (NSB) plan to establish a new department for cybersecurity in the coming months has received wide support among legislators, but some expressed concerns about security over recruiting “hackers” to work in government offices.
Bureau Director-General Lee Shying-jow (李翔宙) confirmed during a legislative session on Thursday that preparations are under way to recruit computer professionals from the private sector to staff the new cybersecurity unit, which is scheduled to start operating on May 1.
The new unit is to be designated the 7th Department (第七處) of the NSB and will have four working divisions: general services; research and development; countercyberattack; and network system defense.
Photo: CNA
The establishment of the new department represents the largest restructuring the bureau has undergone in two decades, and is seen as an important policy initiative and personal accomplishment of the current bureau chief.
The bureau, which is in charge of national security and intelligence affairs, was established in 1954 as an outgrowth of a division within the Department of Special Affairs in the Presidential Office.
After the lifting of martial law, the bureau’s mandate and organization with six major departments were set out in the Organization Act for the National Security Bureau (國家安全局組織法) of 1994.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) questioned the inherent risks of employing “hackers” to conduct cyberwarfare missions, saying they might pose a threat to national security.
Lee disagreed on the use of the term “hackers,” saying they are “cybersecurity experts.”
“They have already performed some assigned tasks and have done very well. So, we are looking to amend the laws regulating information and communications to fully utilize their talents within the bureau’s framework, without infringing on national security,” Lee said.
Most legislators backed the plan and endorsed a proposal to increase the bureau’s budget and expand its mandate.
Some suggested that Lee recruit members of Taiwanese youth teams who have won top places in international hacking competitions.
However, some lawmakers expressed misgivings about whether these individuals would fit in in a government setting where rules and restrictions abound.
“These skillful computer professionals are highly creative, but they are unrestrained in their ideas and habits,” Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) said. “It would be difficult to properly manage them, which might lead to national security problems.”
“Our government agencies operate with a conservative mindset and in a highly restricted environment,” Tsai said. “It is unlikely that many young netizens and hackers would want to join the 7th Department.”
The bureau currently comprises six major departments, along with an Internal Security Department, a center for information collection and a Special Service Center for the personal protection of the president, vice president and their families.
The six departments are: international intelligence; intelligence operations focused on China; domestic security intelligence; analysis of national strategic intelligence; science and technology intelligence, and communication security; and research and development, and sections for deciphering and cipher code equipment.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique